Szeged is the third-largest city in Hungary is a town in Hungary, located in the Southeast of the country and known as "the city of sunshine" for its brilliant weather, as well as for the imposing cathedral, a wealth of Art Nouveau and historicist buildings, and for the fish soup Halászlé.

Szeged lies on Hungary's south-eastern border, just south of the mouth of the Maros river on both banks of the river Tisza. It is about 171 km South of Budapest on the M5 highway. It is the lowest elevation city in the country and is known as the "City of Sunshine", because it has the highest number of sunny days throughout the year. Szeged is the main city in Csongrád county and serves as a commercial and cultural center of the region. According to the 2011 data, the city's population was around 170.000.

Szeged's Open Air Theatre Festival held in the summer attracts people from all over Europe. Szeged is also famous for its gastronomy. Its delicious fish soup is known all over the world, and it has its own festival in September. One of the main attractions of Szeged is the River Tisza, that offers possibilities to do different water sports or boat trips. While boasting hundreds years of history, Szeged has been rebuilt almost entirely after the flood of 1879, which destroyed most of the city. Today, with its avenues, ring roads and beautiful palaces, Szeged is one of the nicest Hungarian cities.

If you are flying to Hungary, you will most likely be arriving to the Liszt Ferenc International Airport in Budapest and you will want to take the M5 highway South to Szeged. It will take from about an hour and half to two hours to drive from the airport. You will need to get a sticker for your car in order to drive on the highway, which you can buy at any gas station (ask for "matrica").

Szeged has a parking zone system, parking tickets are available from newsagent's, local stores, etc.

46.239620.14333Train Station (Nagyállomás). It takes about 2 hours to travel by train from Budapest Nyugati train station to Szeged. These trains also stop at Ferihegy, the station for Budapest Liszt Ferenc Airport, meaning it isn't necessary to travel into the centre of Budapest if travelling to Szeged from the airport.

Szeged lies on the banks of Tisza river. The western side is generally referred to as "Szeged", while the newer eastern side is called "Új-szeged" ("New Szeged").

There are further parts of the city, which you can think of as districts (although they do not work as districts):
Belváros (the center of the city, downtown), Alsóváros, Móraváros, Rókus, Újrókus, Fölsőváros, Tarján, Fodor-kert, Petőfi-telep, Makkosház, Baktó, Tápé, Újszeged, Odessza, Marostői kiskertek, Klebelsberg telep, Kecskés István telep, Iparváros, Béke-telep, Baktó.

For the size of the city, Szeged has a really good public transportation network. Within the city you can get around by cabs (taxi), trams (villamos), trolley buses (trolibusz) or autobus (autóbusz). If you wish to use these types of public transportation, you will need to find out about their routes, stops and schedules. During the work week, in the busy hours, within the city, most public transportation vehicles will leave every 10–15 minutes.

There's no difference in the tickets for the different types of transportation methods. You can usually purchase tickets from the driver, for which you will always have to get on the vehicle using the frontmost door. You can also purchase weekly and monthly passes as well as single-trip tickets from various kiosks and newspaper stands throughout the city. These passes will be valid for all 3 types of public transportation,so you can travel by trams, trolley buses and buses as well. There are also discounts offered to students and seniors.

There are a few taxi services in the city. You can call and "order" one to your location. The drivers may not speak English, but should be able to get you where you want to go. Trips usually cost somewhere between HUF1000-2000 within the city.

Cathedral of Our Lady of Hungary or Votive Church, one of the main sight of Szeged

46.248920.14921Cathedral of Our Lady of Hungary (Votive Church, Szegedi Dóm, Fogadalmi templom), Dóm tér ("Cathedral Square"), 15 (Beside the Dömötör tower), ☎+36 62 420157, +36 20 8232901 (mobil), fax: +36 62 420157, e-mail: info@dom.szeged.hu. Opening Hours: Church Mo to Sa 06.30-19.00 Su 7:30-19:00; Sacristy 06.15-08:00 and 16:00-19:00 Su 07:30-12:30 and 16.00-19.00. Parish Office open Mo, We 08:00-12:00 and 14.00-16:00, Tu, Th, F 8:00-12:00, Sa, Su closed. This twin-spired church serves as the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Szeged–Csanád. - After the great flood of 1879 the municipal board made a wow to erect a monumental Votive Church. It was built between 1913 and 1930, in neo-Romanesque style according plans of Frigyes Schulek and Erno Foer. It is the fourth largest church in Hungary. The dome is 54m outside (33m above the inside floor) and the towers are both 91m high. The cathedral decorated inside and outside with numerous mosaics, statues and low-reliefs. Europe's third largest church organ with over nine thousand pipes is in the Cathedral. One of the most remarkable artistic work among the inside statues is "Christ on the Cross" by János Fadrusz which won Grand Prix in Paris in 1900. Another curiosity is on the ceiling of the sancuary where maria is depicted dressed in shepherd's felt cloak and Szeged slippers in mosaics. In the crypt of the Cathedral eminent clerical personalities are buried. The "Heroes' bell" (or bell of St. Gellert) in the tower on the Tisza side weights 8600kg,-made in 1927,-only seven times per year used. The second biggest bell of the church is 'St. Emeric', (2669kg, made in 1927) and there are more three smaller bells. - Walk around clockwise start at the main entrance (from Cathedral square), Chapel of St. Demetrius, altarpiece of St. Joseph of Kalazant, St. Stephen's side altar, War of the gate (left side, mid part, above the inscription: "Vae Victis" - "Woe to the defeated!"), Cross Fadrusz or Christ on the Cross sculpture (see above), St. Gerard altar, Sacred Heart altar, on the left side of main altar is the St. Demetrius relic shop, before the main altar is the altar with St. Gerard relics, on right of the main oltar is the sacristy, St. Anthony altar, Holy Cross altar, gravestone of Klebelsberg, Gate of Peace (side entrance, above the inscription: "Venite adoremus" - "Come, let us worship"), St. Ladislaus side altar, a altar painting of 'Women at the cross', chapel of 'Maria, the Helper'.Admission: free. Tower: Adult/reduced HUF650/400, crypt: HUF200.

46.2581320.201083St. Michael's Church of Tápéi (Tápéi Szent Mihály templom), Szeged - Tápé, Honfoglalás u.54. (Northeast, close to Tisa), ☎+36 62 496788. Summer: Sa 08:00-9:00, 17:30-18:00, Su 09:00-09:30, 17:00-18:00; winter: Sa 08:00-09:00, 16:30-17:00, Su 09:00-09:30, 16:00-17:00 (check need). A Roman Catholic Church built in 1390's, in gothic style, using the walls of 11th-century church. Remains,-from this period,-can be see at buttressed, early Gothic sanctuary and the lower part of the tower of church. The Baroque transept (main nave) and the tower was built in 1770. The present nave dates from 1940. The fresco fragments of the sanctuary

The Torah Ark of Szeged Synagogue

46.253920.14284Szeged Synagogue (Hungarian: Szegedi zsinagóga, Új zsinagóga), Jósika u. 10., Hajnóczy utca 12. Open Su-Fr 09:00-14:00. (Closed on Jewish holidays). It is a 1907 building designed by the Jewish Hungarian architect Lipót Baumhorn. The building one of the finest examples of the unique fin de siecle Hungarian blending of Art Nouveau and Historicist styles sometimes known as Magyar style. It served Szeged's large Neolog community. Inside: its 48.5m tall domed ceiling, draws on multiple historical styles to produce its overall mixed Art Nouveau and Moorish Revival style. The rib-like wall above the organ has Gothic origins, while the columns supporting the galleries are Roman. The interior is decorated with painted stained glass, all of them are the work of the artist Miksa Róth. The design of the Torah Ark alludes to the Holy of Holies in the Temple of Solomon by using sittim wood from the banks of Nile, the wood called for in the building of the Temple of Solomon in 1 Kings. The hinges are in the shape of the Hysop plant, a plant used in the ancient Temple service. The artistically carved pews, the harmonizing blue, gold and ivory-while decorations were made according to the designs of Immanuel Löw.Entrance tickets, adults: HUF500 HUF, Students: HUF250 the tickets include the guiding, in English.

46.2487120.144846The New Reformed church (Új református templom), Honvéd tér 1. (Close to Big Department Store). The new Calvinist church planned in 1928. Completed only in 1944. Its dominant brick facade, was built of row. The tower of church has a flight of stone stairs leading up to the main entrance decorated with multiple orders of arches, above which there is a triangle with the Calvinist symbol of the flagged lamb made of coloured mosaics in it. The face of the clock tower is constructed of small illuminated squares. Above it there is the bell chamber with arched windows and an all-round corridor; the tower of 41m heigth is crowned with a small cap and a star.

46.2486220.148707Demetrius Tower (Dömötör torony), Dóm Square (front of the much larger Votive Church). By appointment. is the oldest building in Szeged. The foundation was most probably laid during the 11th century, while the lower part was built in Romanesque style from the 12th century, and the upper part in Gothic style from the 13th century. The tower was once part of the former Szent Dömötör templom (St. Demetrius church). The upper part was rebuilt from the original stones in 1926. The architecture of the tower is similar to another found in Southern France, or in the territory of the former Byzantine Empire. Outside on the upper part, there are 48 pointed windows in three levels. On the lower part, a gate was cut and turned to a baptismal chapel in 1931. Above the gate there is a replica of the oldest sculpture in Szeged, the "Kőbárány" (stone lamb), an Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) representation from the early 12th century. The replica replaced the original sculpture in 1991. - Inside the tower, there is a fresco by Vilmos Aba-Novák of the baptism of Hungarians in the 11th century

46.2407020.1370911Alsóvárosi Church and Monastery (Church of Grey Friars, Szeged-Alsóvárosi Ferences Templom), Szeged, Mátyás tér 26 (West three blocks from Train Station), ☎+36 62 442384, e-mail: szeged.pleb@gmail.com. M-F 09:00-12:00, 14:00-17:00, Su 07:00-11:00, 17:00-20:00. In the center of Alsóváros district stands a over 500-year-old group of buildings: a Franciscan church and monastery. The church was completed in 1503 in Gothic style. There are two icons of Maria in the Franciscan church of Alsóváros. One of them is placed in the baroque main altar. The other icon is the Black Mary.

46.2483320.1591212Church of Saint Elisabeth of Hungary (Árpádházi Szent Erzsébet Templom), Torontál tér 4. / Székely sor 2 (Close to Belvárosi bridge, in 'Újszeged' district, East side of the City), ☎+36 62 430350, fax: +36 62 430350, e-mail: pleb23@invitel.hu. Masses Su: 7:30, 9:30, 18:00, Weekdays: 18:00. A roman catholic church. Built in Neo-Gothic style, in 1910. The main tower was over 30m high with assistent towers on both sides. The length of the church in the interior is 21m and it’s 13m wide. The building’s height is 12m. In order to construct a main altar, two side altars and a pulpit in New-Gothic style material from the nearby Rochus church in Szeged was delivered to the district New Szeged. The main altar presented the church patron Saint Elisabeth while the right main altar was devoted to the Virgin Mary. On the left side there was a Saint Cross altar erected. The confessional and the cupboard in the vestry were built by József Jamrik. The organ was purchased from the local organ building manufacture of János Szoukenik.

46.25774720.15019217Water tower (Régi Víztorony), Szent István Square. This is the oldest reinforced concrete building in Hungary

46.251520.145418Reök Palace (REÖK Palota). This has an Art Nouveau facade, with balconies and wrought iron railings

46.25373920.15250819National Theatre of Szeged (Szegedi Nemzeti Színház), Vaszy Viktor tér 1, ☎+36 62 479279, fax: +36 62 475562, e-mail: info@szinhaz.szeged.hu. Cash desk opening hours: Mo-Fr 10:00-17:00, Sa 10:00-12:00 (Entrance at Stefánia út 6), or One hour before the show begins on the spot. This is the main theatre of Szeged, built in 1883 by the well-known company of Ferdinand Fellner and Hermann Helmer in Eclectic and Neo-baroque style.Tickets HUF800-3500.

In the summer you don't want to miss the famous "Open-Air Festival" [3]. It is called open-air, because the Dóm square is turned into a stage with seats. It usually starts around the beginning of July and ends sometime in August. The shows play for about a week and then they change. Tickets are not always easy to get, but you can always get them from scouts (of course at a higher price) before the show starts.

Tips: If you are on a limited budget, you can purchase tickets for a lower price and after the show has started you can move to a better (empty) seats.

There are several events taking place in Szeged during the summer. The best way to find out about their times is from the free local magazine (called "Szegedi Est") that you can find in most restaurants, bars, clubs and cinemas.

46.252920.15131Belvárosi Cinema (Belvárosi Mozi) (near the Mora museum, next to the main theater.). a traditional, old, large movie theater. It has recently been upgraded and now also offers 3D movies.

Like some other Hungarian towns, Szeged also has thermal baths. The two best known are:

Anna Bath (Anna fürdő) (located downtown of the city). It has just been renovated and offers an amazing experience . The bath has two sections, which offer various natural, thermal water based pools, spas, saunas. - The younger (mainly 20-30s) crowd enjoys visiting the bath's Night Swimming events every Monday, Wednesday, Friday night between 9-12PM. The entry fees are half-priced for these events (currently about 900 Forints, or about 4-5 Euros).

Thermal (Thermálfürdő) (located at the swimming pool complex on the Újszeged side of the city.). is an older, indoor thermal bath.

You can see the city from the above and if that is something you would like to do, just head out to the local airport. You can select from various airplane tours ranging that last about 15 minutes to 1.5 hours around the city. They even have programs when they "let you fly" the airplane: [4]

The Szeged Go-Cart ring is on the road 47, outbound from Szeged, just before the junction of M43 and 47. The track is made of old tires in an old parking lot, and is about 800 meters in length. Prices are reasonable: [5]

Szeged is famous for its local, traditional food. - The most famous of all is probably the Fisherman's soup (Halászlé), which is made from various freshwater fish using lots of paprika (this is not necessarily spicy, but you can definitely order it that way).

Szeged is also known for its good quality sausage and salami. Pick is Szeged's own brand, which is also exported to various countries around the world. Make sure that you try the famous "Pick salami". You can buy these products at most local grocery stores and smaller, family owned 24/7 stores.

If you are looking for international food, just check the local grocery stores. You shouldn't have too much problem finding anything from around the world. Even Americans can find their favorite cream cheese and peanut butter/jelly if they look around...

The quality of the food varies by restaurants, but is good in general. Meats and cheese can be found at most places, and they are often breaded and fried. If you go to a standard restaurant, the portions will be generous and more than enough to feed an adult.

Gőry restaurant (Gőry Pince & Terasz). serve extra large portions of food, which are almost impossible to eat all at once. - Food is excellent. Prices: higher than usual

Agni restaurant (Agni étterem), Tisza Lajos krt. 76. (In the downtown). there is also a vegetarian restaurant serving traditional Indian and Hungarian dishes as well.

There are lots of fast food places in the city. The most popular ones are local pizza restaurants, which are all around town. Some of them, which are open until the morning hours, are popular gathering places for the late night crowd. Of course, the international fast food chains are also present (Burger King, McDonald's, etc.), they are popular mostly among younger people. Compared to the local fast food places, these chains offer smaller portions for higher prices.

The traditional fisherman's restaurants are a great choice for visitors. Locals also visit these on a regular basis because of their excellent fish soup and wide selection of good other food. There are three main fishmerman's restaurants in town.

Kiskörössy Fish Tavern (Kiskörössy Halászcsárda) (in the northeastern part of Szeged, on the bank of the Tisza River.). This is an excellent choice in the warmer months, because you can enjoy your meal next to the river and quite often they will also have musicians perform traditional Hungarian folkmusic or Gypsy music for the guests. You'd probably want to catch a cab to get to this restaurant, and then use another cab to get back to your hotel.

[dead link]Fehértói Fish Tavern (Fehértói Halászcsárda) (is outside the city, next to the old E5 highway going towards Budapest. You can ask a cab to drop you off here and they can also bring you back.). This restaurant breeds its own fish and is known for its excellent fish soup. Their prices are reasonable as well.

Hungary has very good home made style pastries and cookies. Szeged has a few bakeries around town that have excellent food selection. Ordering is quite simple, since most of the baked goods are displayed behind a glass window. They are usually freshly baked. Just point and pick what your eyes like and enjoy. Some of the more popular pastry shops around town:

Hatos Rétes. Located on Klauzál square, known for strudels ("rétes" in Hungarian).

Palánk. Ice-cream shop

Z. Nagy Cukrászda. One of the best pastry shops in the city, where most of the locals go to. You can find it under József Attila sugárút 24.

John Bull Pub (downtown, about 50 meters from the Virág Cukrászda). Great place to grab a beer with clients or friends, and can be an excellent choice for a romantic dinner. They have a big menu, with a good selection. Prices: high

Szeged is a University town and it has a very active night life throughout the school year. The high school and college crowd gets mixed up at most places, although some clubs try to target specific age groups with their events.

Most places have entrance fees, but offer discounts if you have a student ID. Regular fees are around 500-1000 Forints depending on the day of the week, the place and the event.

Parties are advertised to start early at night, but the crowd doesn't start to gather really until about midnight or 1AM (!!!) and usually party until the morning. This is true even on weekdays (for example Wednesday is a very big party night). Many times people meet at local pubs for a drink and talks before hitting these places.

[formerly dead link]GinTonic (This is a club in the basement of the older Tisza Hotel in downtown.). It has dance nights every Friday. It is in the same block as Retro, but on the other side of the building. This is a highly popular party place among foreign students who study in the city. They usually play the latest popular dance songs.HUF800 ?.

JATE Klub. This is one of the popular university clubs that is open during the day as well as at night. There is a large bar section and several dance floors with different types of music. Concerts and other cultural events are also common here. If the evening appears to be slow, the crowd might go over to the SZOTE Klub (which is true vice-versa). The high school and college crowd blends really well in this place. They play all types of music from alternative through the latest popular dance songs to older Hungarian favorites.Sometimes they collect entrance fees, but you can get in without a fee if you get there earlier.?.

Retro. this is a newer coffee house, that turns into a dance club at night. Dance nights are held on Fridays and Saturdays. The place mostly attracts graduates, late 20s and above. They like to play songs from the 80s, 90s and of course today's hits.HUF1000.

Sing-Sing. this is one of the largest dance clubs in Southern Hungary. It is located right next to Szeged's main bus station and farmer's market. This club usually attracts the younger high-school crowd (their average age is probably around 20). It is well known for its semi-monhtly nude (both male and female) dance shows, concerts with invited guests and teen parties. They usually play the latest dance hits.

Gentleman's Club (Zsiráf Klub), Fürj utca (Near the Greek restaurant). There is one gentleman's club in town called Zsiráf.

In Szeged, and in most other, bigger Hungarian cities you can find a cheap room in college dorms. Most places will let you pay cash and stay for a few days. There are a few of these around town and the best way to find one is probably to ask one of the younger, "student looking" locals.

46.2473120.167763Mora Ferenc College (Móra Ferenc Kollégium), Közép fasor 31-33. (E one km), ☎+36 62 544101, fax: +36 62 544-099, e-mail: info@mora.u-szeged.hu. OPEN: only summer July 1 to August 31! - The rooms have three beds, but also for one or two persons rentable. The rooms have Internet access, refrigerator and sink compartment, the showers and toilets are located in the hallway. There are a limited number room and apartments with private bath or shower.In the neighbourhood there are two restaurants: the Egyetemi Étterem and the Blues Kert.Traditional dorm rooms per 1-2-3-4. Adults / Students HUF2800/2100 / person. Children up to 6 years free of charge. - Single and double rooms with bath HUF4000/8000.

Baja - This is a local commercial centre and the provider of public services such as education and healthcare. A small cosmopolitan town (pop.37000) with some minorites such Germans; Croats; Serbs; Slovaks and Romanis. Also there are some museums and art galleries. The city churches representing the variety of religion.

Kecskemét - A city approximately halfway on the road and railway to Budapest. It boasts a pretty historical center that is largely pedestrianized.

Subotica in Serbia - Just on the other side of the border. The time you need to get there varies according to the waiting time at the border but usually it takes approximately 2-3 hours. It is a nice first stop if you want to explore some other cities in Serbia as well.